Determining Bandgap of Thermochromic Phosphor Films via Reflectance Measurements under Controlled Heating

In this article, we present a method to determine the bandgap of a thermochromic phosphor film by simple reflectance measurements under controlled heating. The phosphor is illuminated by a light-emitting diode while being heated continuously. The reflected light is detected using a calibrated photod...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Katashaya, Steven Rwabona
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Kabale University 2024
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Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12493/2324
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Summary:In this article, we present a method to determine the bandgap of a thermochromic phosphor film by simple reflectance measurements under controlled heating. The phosphor is illuminated by a light-emitting diode while being heated continuously. The reflected light is detected using a calibrated photodiode circuit based on an operational transconductance amplifier. We apply the Schuster Kubelka-Munk function to deduce the absorbance over temperature and thus the bandgap. We show, for the first time, that the thermochromic phosphor's color change follows Arrhenius's Law and therefore involves activation energy. We estimate the bandgap to be between 1.1 eV and 1.9 eV and find an activation energy of 46.67 ±1.6 kJ/mol. The simplicity of the approach will appeal to undergraduate teachers and students of physics and materials science. The technique can be used to investigate other thermochromic materials as well.